Thursday, May 30, 2019
VOLUME 1 I ISSUE 48
MERIDIANSOURCE.CA
The buzz behind LCSD and the Bee Cause Project TAYLOR WEAVER
EDITOR
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Kindergarten students from throughout the Lloydminster Catholic School Division (LCSD) were out of the classroom as they took steps to understand, engage, and learn from honey bees last week. Students from five LCSD elementary schools got to spend a few hours in the backyard “secret garden” of Laurie and Dusty Makichuk to wrap up their second year as a partner with the division, to enhance students understanding of honey bees and the important role they play in society. “ T h i s i s t h e f o u rt h year we’ve had the bees at the house but this is the second year we’ve involved the school division and doing an extensive STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) learning program,” she said. “So I go into the classrooms six times throughout the year and give them the background on the bees, and the kids are very well
versed in everything the honeybee does, which is really cool, and then they come out here for their final field trip and they get to see how everything happens and how it all works.” Makichuk was pleased to announce a grant and partnership with The Bee Cause Project, which has helped the educational program grow immensely. “We received some money from the Bee Cause Project and bought some things just to make the learning centres here at the house more interactive for the kids, as well as some bee suits for the kids to use. Wayside Dental has also given us some money for suits, and Sobey’s has sponsored the lunch here, which is fantastic.” With a global shortage of honey bees and misconceptions and fear of the insects, the main message Makichuk wants students to take away from the experience is the knowledge of the bees and the positivity that comes out of the simple
Taylor Weaver Meridian Source
Laurie Makichuk, back, was thrilled to host kindergarten students from throughout the Lloydminster Catholic School Division this past week at her secret backyard garden to educate young minds on honey bees and the important role they play in society.
things they do. “They’re calm and not aggressive like a hornet or a wasp. They do not attack people,” she said. “If we don’t have bees pollinating then we don’t have fruits or vegetables, and it trickles down to everything else. The kids have to not be afraid of them, and it’s great for them to just see all of this and
see the bees in action.” With this being Makichuk’s second year in the classroom with young LCSD students, director of education Nigel McCarthy has seen the positive impact her passion and handson learning style brings to each student, and is looking forward to seeing it continue. “It’s extraordinarily
fun, but what it allows us to do is connect children with people in the community. Not many school days, when we were kids, did you get to go out to a garden like this and understand how bees make honey, and how food is grown, and many of those other very important things that kids aren’t connected with,”
said McCarthy. “It’s not just about making kids comfortable with teachers, it’s about making kids comfortable with the world, and that’s something that Laurie’s project really allows us to do. I hope when they leave here today they know the bees are here for them and that it’s all part of God’s plan.”